Data at glance of Pakistan - average on period

History

The Indus Valley civilization, one of the oldest in the world and dating back at least 5,000 years, spread over much of modern-day Pakistan. During the second millennium B.C., remnants of this culture fused with the migrating Indo-Aryan peoples. The area underwent successive invasions in subsequent centuries from the Persians, Greeks, Scythians, Arabs (who brought Islam), Afghans, and Turks. The Mughal Empire flourished in the 16th and 17th centuries; the British came to dominate the region in the 18th century. The partition in 1947 of British India into the Muslim state of Pakistan (with West and East sections) and largely Hindu India created lasting tension between the two countries. They have fought two wars and a limited conflict -- in 1947-48, 1965, and 1999 respectively -- over the Kashmir territory, a dispute that continues to this day. A third war in 1971 -- in which India assisted an indigenous movement reacting to Bengali marginalization in Pakistani politics -- resulted in East Pakistan becoming the separate nation of Bangladesh. In response to Indian nuclear weapons testing, Pakistan conducted its own tests in 1998. Pakistan has been engaged in a decades-long armed conflict with militant groups, including the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and other militant networks that target government institutions and civilians.

Environment

Area: 796,095 km2

Climate: mostly hot, dry desert; temperate in northwest; arctic in north

Natural resources: arable land, extensive natural gas reserves, limited petroleum, poor quality coal, iron ore, copper, salt, limestone

Ethnic characteristics

Groups: Punjabi 44.7%, Pashtun (Pathan) 15.4%, Sindhi 14.1%, Saraiki 8.4%, Muhajirs 7.6%, Baloch 3.6%, other 6.3%

Languages: Punjabi 38.8%, Pashto (alternate name, Pashtu) 18.2%, Sindhi 14.6%, Saraiki (a Punjabi variant) 12.2%, Urdu 7.1%, Balochi 3%, Hindko 2.4%, Brahui 1.2%, other 2.4%major-language sample(s): دنیا کا قاموس، ایک لازمی زریہ بنیادی معلومات کا (Urdu)The World Factbook, the indispensable source for basic information.note: data represent population by mother tongue; English (official; lingua franca of Pakistani elite and most government ministries)

Religions: Islam (official) 96.5% (Sunni 85-90%, Shia 10-15%), other (includes Christian and Hindu) 3.5% (2020 est.)

Government

Capital: Islamabad

Government type: federal parliamentary republic

Executive branch

Chief of state: President Asif Ali ZARDARI (since 10 March 2024)

Head of government: Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz SHARIF (since 3 March 2024)cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president on the advice of the prime ministerelection/appointment process: president indirectly elected for a 5-year term (limited to 2 consecutive terms) by the Electoral College, which consists of members of the Senate, National Assembly, and provincial assemblies; prime minister elected for a 5-year term by the National Assemblymost recent election date: 9 March 2024election results: 2024: Asif Ali ZARDARI elected president; National Assembly vote - Asif Ali ZARDARI (PPP) 411 votes, Mehmood Khan ACHAKZALI (PMAP) 181 votes; Shehbaz SHARIF elected prime minister; National Assembly vote - Shehbaz SHARIF (PML-N) 201, Omar AYUB (PTI) 922018: Arif ALVI elected president; Electoral College vote - Arif ALVI (PTI) 352, Fazl-ur-REHMAN (MMA) 184, Aitzaz AHSAN (PPP) 124; Imran KHAN elected prime minister; National Assembly vote - Imran KHAN (PTI) 176, Shehbaz SHARIF (PML-N) 96expected date of next election: 2029

Legislative branch

Description: legislature name: Parliament (Majlis-E-Shoora)legislative structure: bicameralnote: in May 2018, the Parliament of Pakistan and the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly passed a constitutional amendment to merge the Federally Administrated Tribal Areas and Provincially Administered Tribal Areas with the province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa; the amendment reduces the Senate from 104 to 96 members - 4 in the 2024 election and 4 in the 2027 election